1. Field of the Invention
A receptacle to support and retain a plurality of used hypodermic needle and syringe combinations to prevent the accidental pricking of the care giver or patient for safe storage and disposal.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous means for the disposal of contaminated medical instruments have been developed. Such devices often provide containers to receive contaminated medical instruments deposited for disposal. It is important that such disposal devices reduce the extent reasonably obtainable the likelihood that the contaminated medical instruments will subsequently accidentally puncture someone and that contaminants will escape from the disposal container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,449 discloses a block of styrofoam for penetration by and for frictionally holding, disposable hypodermic needles, scalpels and other sharps, held in a container including a bottom and a sidewall. Pawl-shaped projections are provided adjacent the upper lip of the sidewall. A lid includes complementary pawl-shaped projections adjacent its lower lip for engagement with respective projections on a contaminant neutralizing substance such as BETADINE, or another layer of, for example, wadding, located above or below the styrofoam can be saturated with the contaminant neutralizing substance. The sharps are protected only when the lid is plaCED ON THE CONTAINER. When so assembled, additional sharps cannot be introduced into the block.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,093,537 describes a medical case having a housing and removable cap. The body has a center hole open at the top and two narrower holes at the sides thereof configured to receive respective medical instruments. Sealing plugs are provided to seal the hole.
U.S. Pat. No. 478,081 shows a three cylindrical vessel to retain liquid and syringe. The case then serves as a sealed vessel to carry the medicated solution as well as the syringe. Annular stops are provided which engage the coupling of the needles and prevent their points from coming in contact with the bottoms of inclosing cylinders.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,865 teaches a closed sorbent shock or impact resistant container for shipping and storing hazardous liquid materials or a cryogenic container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,264 describes a medical needle removing and disposing system comprising a box having a plurality of compartments therein, each for removing a needle assembly from injection and/or blood drawing equipment and for disposing of the needle assembly. A compartment comprises first and second containers for defining first and second chambers with a needle gripper positioned therebetween. The first container has a plastic, non-hardening, tacky, substance therein. Injection and/or blood drawing equipment with a medical needle assembly mounted thereon can be manipulated to extend a shaft of the needle assembly into the second chamber until a mounting tube of the medical needle assembly is located at the needle assembly remover which grips the mounting tube so that the injection and/or blood drawing equipment can be rotated for unscrewing the mounting tube from the injection and/or blood drawing equipment. The medical needle assembly is left in the dispenser with the shaft buried in the tacky substance.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,067 describes a collection box having a cover plate provided with a multiplicity of square openings into which a needle is inserted detachably fastened at a one-way-syringe whereby the head of the needle is caught behind the sharp-edged inside border of the opening and the syringe can be pulled off from the needle which is being held in position by a disinfectant filling into which the needle has been pierced.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,935,285 teaches an injection syringe container comprising a housing having a bottom wall, side walls, first and second end walls and a top wall. The top wall is formed with a longitudinal row of spaced openings, a pair of facing channel tracks secured upon and extending along the top wall and located at opposite sides of the longitudinal row of openings with upstanding tubes within the housing and fixedly mounted on the bottom wall.
Additional examples of the prior art are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,738,872; 3,292,776; 4,015,810; 4,037,814; 4,327,060; 4,380,292; 5,020,665; Des. 229,048 and Des. 259,141.